Knitting instrument



Dec. 14, 1954 i A. sHoRTLANm 2,696,721

xNIT'rING INSTRUMENT l Filed April 4, 1951 2 sneetsnsheet z y BVMW/22%United States Patent Office 2,696,721 Patented Dec. 14, 1954 KNITTIN GINSTRUMENT Arthur Shortland, Leicester, England, assignor to MellorBromley & Co. Limited, Leicester, England, a British company ApplicationApril 4, 1951, Serial No. 219,143

Claims priority, application Great Britain April 4, 1950 3 Claims. (Cl.66-121) This invention relates to knitting instruments for use inknitting machines, which expression is intended to include not onlylooping elements, such, for instance, as needles, sinkers and certainforms of points or transfer elements adapted either to form or to beactually in contact With loops during knitting and auxiliary operations,but also jacks and the like for actuating such elements.

The invention is, however, principally concerned with the manufacture ofknitting needles of any appropriate type, but more particularlyindependent latch needles.

The general object of the invention is to provide a novel manner ofmanufacturing knitting instruments as herein defined whereby many of thedifculties and disadvantages of prior methods will be obviated, andcertain advantages will accrue, as will be hereinafter described.

According to this invention, there is provided a knitting instrument, ora part thereof, comprising two integral opposing sections which arecontoured to correspond generally with the configuration of theinstrument or part and are produced by wholly or partially folding ablank 1n two.

ln making such an instrument or part, at least the major portion of theinitially flat blank will usually be folded in two along its medianline. Thus, in this case, the adjoining sections at opposite sides ofthe median line of the blank, in its initially at form, are wholly orfor the most part the mirror image of one another.

An important advantage derived from making a knitting instrument, or apart thereof, in this way is that it can be blanked out from relativelythin sheet metal of a thickness half, or even less than half, that ofthe finished instrument or part. If the material of the blank issubstantially half the final thickness desired, then, when the blank isfolded in two, the aforesaid opposing sections or the appropriateportions thereof, will require to be pressed firmly together facially.But if, on the other hand, the material from which the blank is formedis less than half the required thickness of the instrument or part, thenthe blank may be folded in such a way that the resulting opposedsections are spaced apart somewhat laterally, thereby producing alight-weight instrument of U, i. e. channel, section.

ln any event, afurther advantage arising from the adoption ofinstruments made from folded blanks is that by judiciously separating orsqueezing together the opposing sections, the degree of frictionalcontact of the instruments with the walls of the tricks in an instrumentbed can be precisely varied, according to requirements.

lt will accordingly be understood that the new or improved method ofmanufacture makes it possible to produce several gauges of knittinginstruments from relatively thin sheet steel of the same thickness.

Quite apart from the foregoing advantage, the fact of being able, in themanufacture of knitting instruments, to use sheet steel of thicknessesconsiderably less than heretofore not only materially reduces the wear,and consequently the upkeep, of the tools used in stamping, pressing orcutting out the blanks, but also enables cleaner blanks to be produced.

By means of the herein described method of manufacture, moreover, slots,grooves, channels or eyes for various purposes can be expeditiously andaccurately formed in the Shanks or stems of instruments, withoutrecourse to difficult and unsatisfactory sawing or 1nilling operations,merely by folding blanks in two suchwisc as to leave the adjoiningsections, or appropriate portions of such sections, separated.

ln this connection a desired portion of a blank may advantageously bemade thinner than the remainder so that upon the blank being folded intwo and the opposing sections pressed together, the thin portions willremain separated, laterally, to provide the opposite side walls of aslot, groove or eye. If, in such a construction, the opposing sectionsof the folded blank, instead of being pressed together facially, areallowed to remain separated to produce a shank or stern of channelledform, then there will be provided between the aforesaid thinner portionsa slot, groove or eye with width of which exceeds the separation of theremaining portions of the adjoining sections.

Some specific examples of the invention will now be described withreference to the accompanying drawings, wherein,

Figure 1 illustrates an initially flat blank suitable for themanufacture of an independent latch needle,

Figure 2 shows the first stage in the operation of folding the saidblank-this resulting in the provision of a butt reinforcement,

Figure 3 shows the blank as it appears when folded in two,

Figure 4 is a detail front edge view of the lower portion of the foldedblank showing the manner in which the butt is completed,

Figure 5 illustrates the next stage in the manufacture of the latchneedle from the folded blank,

Figure 6 is a detail View of the upper portion of the needle shown inFigure 5, and depicts the formation of the hook of the needle beforeturning,

Figure 7 is a detail perspective view of the breast or swell of theneedle per se,

Figure 8 is a side View of the completed latch needle,

Figure 9 shows an alternative way of shaping the upper part of the blankrepresented in Figure 1 so that it initially includes the hook andbreast (or swell) forms,

Figure 10 depicts a possible modication of the lower part of the saidblank to provide a plain butt,

Figure ll shows this modied lower part of the blank folded in two,

Figure 12 shows a strengthening piece for insertion between the opposingsections of the folded lower part of the blank depicted in Figure l1,

Figure 13 shows the said strengthening piece inserted and riveted inposition,

Figure 14' depicts a further modification of the latch needle blank,

Figure l5 shows, drawn to an enlarged scale, the initially dat blankfrom which the latch of the needle is ma e, v

Figure 16 shows the last mentioned blank partly folded in two such wiseas to form the spoon of the latch,

Figure 17 is a front View of the completed latch,

Figure 18 represents a symmetrical blank, in its initially at condition,from which can be made the spring beard needle shown in Figure 19,

Figure 20 shows one form of foldable sinker blank,

Figure 21 shows the holding down sinker produced by folding the saidblank in two,

Figure 22 illustrates a modification of the sinker blank shown in Figure20, and

Figure 23 represents a still further form of symmetrical blank for themanufacture of the loop transfer instrument depicted in Figure 24.

Like parts are designated by similar reference characters throughout thedrawings.

The initially ilat blank illustrated in Figure 1 1s 1ntended to bestamped or cut out from relatively thin deep drawing sheet steel. Thethickness of the steel is one third that of the final thickness of theneedle to be produced. ln the main the outer edges of .the integraladjoining sections 2 of this blank at opposite sides of the median linea thereof, are identically contoured cach to correspond, generally, withthe front edge of the stem of the latch needle to be produced. Thecontours, one right-hand and the other left-hand, are designed toprovide initially, starting from the lower end of the blank, arectangular tail 3, an outwardly directed T-shaped foldable extension lat the right-hand side of the blank comprising portions 4a and 4bserving to provide respectively an operating butt and a reinforcementtherefor, an extension 5 which is located at the left-hand side of theblank and is foldable to embrace the butt, an adjoining parallel-sidedportion 6 to form a straight length of the stem followed by an upwardlytapered portion 7 and finally a narowed parallel-sided portion 3. Theadjoining sections of the upper parallel-sided portion 8 are punched atlocations 9 to form small protuberances.

The rst step in the manufacture of a latch needle from the blank justdescribed is illustrated in Figure 2 and consists in folding in twoalong the line b the portion 4a of the T-shaped extension 4. As theresult of this first fold there is provided an operating butt it? ofdouble thickness, and the reinforcing portion 4b becomes located on theblank with its then inner edge de coincident with the median line a.Next, the entire blank l is folded in two along the median line a, insuch a way that the integral sections 2 become opposed but remainseparated by the thickness of the reinforcing portion ib then interposedbetween them in the manner depicted in Figure 4. The folded blank isaccordingly of channel form, with the protuberance at 9 facing inwardsand co-axially disposed. To complete the folding of the blank, the upperand lower ends of the extension 5 are folded along the lines c and dover the corresponding edges of the butt itl so as to embrace, thickenand still further strengthen the latter (see Figure 4).

The blank having been folded, the upper part thereof is appropriatelyshaped, e. g. either by means of a concave cutter or by clipping, toform, as shown Figure 5, the hook and adjoining breast or swell contours1l and l2 respectively. The opposed separated parts of the breast orswell 12 constitute the walls of a slot 13 (Figure 7) to receive a latchblade. Next the hook portion of the folded blank is formed to therequired shape shown in Figure 6, either by swaging it in two operations(rough and finish) or by first fusing it to produce a solid point andthen swaging. In either event, the treated hook portion of the blank isthen set in line, cut to length and pointed.

Thereupon the pivoted latch is fitted between the separated parts of thebreast or swell 12. Now in this particular example, the latch 14 of theneedle is, in accordance with a further feature of the invention, alsofashioned from an initially flat sheet metal blank such as thatindicated at l5 in Figure l5. The latch blank 15, which is small andcomparatively narrow, has straight parallel sides 16 a rounded leadingend il? and an opopposite end ll8 shaped as shown. The latch isfashioned by folding in two along the median line e a portion only ofthe blank l5 so as to produce a flat latch blade i9, the remainingportion of the blank being left unfolded but carefully worked to form aconventional latch spoon 29. lf necessary or desirable the opposedfolded portions of the latch blade i9 may be braeed, welded or otherwisesuitably secured together. The end of the latch le remote from the spoon29 is punched with a pivot hole 2l, or such a hole may be produced bystamping a pair of side by side holes in the adjoining sections of theinitially flat blank l5 so that when the latter is folded, the pair ofholes will be brought into register to form what is in effect a singlepivot hole. In either event, in tting the completed latch to the needle,the latch is positioned within the appropriate portion of the fold andthe scparated parts of the breast or swell 12 are squeezed together sothat the co-axial protuberances 9 engage in opposite sides of the pivothole 2l.

To complete the latch needle, the previously prepared hook portion ofthe folded blank is turned to form the hook 22 in the manner shown inFigure 8. This hook may, if desired and as shown, be tilted. Thereafter,the needle is iirst inspected, for latch freedom and to check that thespoon 2t) accurately seats on the point of the hook 22, then hardened,tempered and, if necessary, finally polished.

According to a modification (not shown) the appropriate end of the latchblank is indented at opposite sides of the median line e to produce apair of side by side protuberances so that when the blank is folded theresulting latch blade will have projecting from opposite sides thereofaxially aligned pintles or trunnions for engagement in registeredbearing holes in the opposed parts of the breast or swell l2.

It is to be clearly understood that the needle latch need notnecessarily be of the form produced from a folded blank as hereinbeforedescribed.

According to a further modification of the hereinbef-ore describedmethod of manufacturing a latch needle, the upper portion of the flatblank l, instead of being parallel-sided as shown in Figure l isinitially shaped as depicted in Figure 9 to provide the hook and breastor swell contours, thereby eliminating the necessity for cutting orclipping the blank after it has been folded. Thus, the modified blankhas a narrowed neck-like portion 23 followed by 'a pair of outwardlycurved portions 24- to form the breast or swell and hence also the wallsof the slot to receive the latch blade, and a relatively narrow portion25' merging into a point to provide the hook. At the region of theoutwardly curved portions 24: the blank may, if desired, be thinned downsomewhat.

Again, the sides of the body of the needle may be corrugated to obtaingreater stiffness, in which instance the `blank 1 would be initiallyformed with corrugations such as those indicated at 26 in Figure lll.

lt is also within the scope of the invention to provide the bottom partof the needle blank l, following the rectangular tail 3 and in lieu oflthe extensions fi and 5 with a pair of outwardly directed rectangularlugs 2.7 (Figure l0) adapted, when the blank is folded as shown inFigure ll to provide an operating butt in this alternative construction,a strengthening piece Z9 having a butt-reinforcing projection 3@ (Figurel2) is inserted in the folded blank and riveted in position illustratedin Figure 14. Or, again, the opposing sections o. :l butt and tail partsof the folded blank may be reinforced by welding, brazing or otherwisesecuring them together, with or without the interposition of an inserttherein,- tween.

To vensure that the yarn engaging surface of the hook of a needle madein accordance with this invention is smooth, the narrow portion of theblank to form the hook ma, according to a still further modication, becranked or offset and folded in two rearwardly, whilst the remainingpart of the said blank is folded in two forwardly to restore thealignment of the two portions. By this procedure, instead of twoadjacent edges being presented outermost for engagement with yarn, theinner surface of the hook is -constituted by a smooth fold in thematerial.

Broadly speaking, the invention is applicable to the manufacture of manyvarieties of latch and bearded needles including those having more thanone butt, double-ended needles, rib dial needles, loop transferringneedles, 4and so on. For instance, the spring beard needle 3l shown inFigure 19 may be fashioned from the initially dat symmetrical blank 311shown in Figure 18.

The flat blank 32 illustrated in Figure 2() is for the manufacture of aholding down sinker or web holder. As will be seen this particularblank, which is not symmetrical, comprises, `at opposite sides of amedian line f, a rectangular section 33 in the outer longitudinal edgeof which is formed a recess 34, and an integral adjoining section havinga portion 35 of the same contour as, but opposite hand to the section 33and also a forwardly projecting operative portion 36 shaped to provide anib, throat and belly. The sinker or web holder is made by folding theblank in two along the median line f, so that the finished instrumenthas, as shown in Figure 2l, an appropriately recessed and reinforcedshank of double thickness and an operative portion of single thickness.In this example, the fold is coincident with the lower edge of theinstrument.

The sinker blank just described may 'be modified in the manner shown inFigure 22, that is to say, lby forming therein a single rectangularopening 37 instead of the two recesses. Thus, when such modified blankis folded in two along the median line f, the resulting holding downsinker or web holder will be similar to that de icted in Figure 2l withthe exception that the fold will be coincident with the upper instead ofthe lower edge of the reinforced shank.

The operative end 38 of the symmetrical transfer iustrument blank E@illustrated in Figure 23 is divided longitudinally, by a cut 4), intotwo separated halves which, when the blank is folded in two along themedian line g, can be bowed outwardly lin opposite directions toprovide, as shown in Figure 24, a loop-spreading forma` tion 41 havingshoulders 42 adapted for the retention of a spread loop.

What I claim then is:

1. A knitting needle of the latch type comprising integral opposingsections which are produced by folding an yinitially flat sheet metalblank and shaped to provide the stem and the hook of the needle fromwhich stem projects an integral operating butt, a strengthening piecewhich is formed integrally with the blank and is inserted into thefolded blank to reinforce the said butt and the adjoining portion -ofthe stem, and a latch the inner end of which Iis provided within thefolded blank adjacent to the hook.

2. A method of making a knitting needle of the latch type using a flatsheet met-al blank, the outer longitudinal edges of which are con-touredeach to correspond, generally, with the front edge of the stem of theneedle to be produced, the right and left-hand contours being such as toprovide, starting from the lower end of the blank, a tail, an outwardlydirected T-shaped extension adjoining the tail 4at one edge of theblank, the sa'id extension being adapted to be folded to provide a buttand an integral strengthening piece, an extension at the opposite ed-geof the blank which is foldable to embrace the said butt, astraight-sided portion to form a length of the needle stem followed byan upwardly tapered portion and nally a narrowed straight-sided portionhaving a pair of side-by-side formations for engagement with a latchwhich includes the rst steps of folding in two the portion of theT-shaped extension immediately adjoining v integral operating butt andstrengthening piece is defined by an outwardly directed T-shapedextension.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 119,651 Roper Oct. 3, 1871 1,681,512 Beyer Aug. 21, 19281,961,429 Perret June 5, 1934 2,030,261 Lombardi Feb. 11, 1936 2,156,439Takeda May 2, 1939 2,249,780 Page July 22, 1941 2,399,308 Amidon Apr.30, 1946 2,436,371 Amidon Feb. 24, 1948 2,450,723 Elrad Oct. 5, 1948FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 688,926 France Aug. 30, 1930

